We're mere weeks away from enjoying an al fresco cocktail—if you will it, it is no dream. With temps hovering in the low-60s on some lucky days, it's time to get out of the basement, toss out the toddies and explore some fresh spring flavors. And booze. Citrus and gin are always welcome in springtime, so let's get drinking. Here are eight seasonable recommendations you don't need to be outside to enjoy.
Brilliantly-colored little birds inspire the Cuzco Humming Bird ($12) at Los Americanos, the Tribeca's Latin American hotspot. The cocktail starts with Pisco—the yellow-hued grape brandy tied to Peru and Chile—which bartenders mix with herbal tea made from the coca leaf, the same plant used to make a different type of intoxicant. Mint and lemon are added for bite and freshness, then the drink is shaken and strained over crushed ice.
Because cucumbers are a vegetable, drinking the Elderflower-Cucumber Crush at any of NYC's Haru outposts means you're imbibing guilt-free, a welcome notion pre-scary swimsuit season. The refreshing cucumber and lime base gets some boozy notions from Hendrick's gin and St-Germain, a French liqueur flavored with elderflower, accentuating gin's natural floral qualities. The cocktail typically sets you back $13 but swing by during happy hour (times vary, but 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. M - F is a safe bet at all locations except Sake Bar) and you can sip on the drink for just $8 a glass.
Jewels Pecules (courtesy Bo's)
Stop by for the fried alligator and stay for the strawberry cocktails at Flatiron's Bo's Kitchen & Bar Room. On the spring lineup this year: Jewels Pecules ($13), a Ketel One vodka-based drink with St. Germain (there it is again!), fresh strawberries and some effervescent lift from Prosecco. The pleasantly pink tincture would pair well with one of the restaurant's saltier offerings, like the Low Country Ham ($14) with biscuits and marmalade.
Heat seekers would do well to head to The Wayland, where mixologist Brian Hawthorne has created A Celebration of Citrus ($11), a super refreshing, herbaceous and spicy cocktail made with muddled jalapenos. Campari and sweet vermouth provide some of the intoxicating elements in the cocktail, which gets shaken and strained into a chilled glass. Fresh orange and grapefruit juices provide the namesake citrus—as does a lime garnish—with some sparkling Cava wine cutting through some of the pulp.
A little caffeine shot makes the Always Greener ($12) a nice choice for fueling a marathon cocktail session or recovering from a marathon session the night before. They're mixing up this gin-based drink at Extra Fancy in Williamsburg, using Tanqueray and a green tea honey, which they'll shake up with fresh lemon juice and mint then top with soda water. Fizzy, fresh and fragrant, it's a refreshing option when the temperature starts to creep towards summer.
Beta Carrotini (courtesy Good Enough to Eat)
Forgiving the cheesy name, Good Enough to Eat's Beta Carrotini sounds good enough to drink, plus offers the illusion that you're improving your health while getting a little crunk. Carrot and orange juices get a healthy fortification of Hendrick's gin and orange-flavored Cointreau to ramp up the citrusy sweetness. Though available at any time, the $12 drunk juice would be the perfect antidote to some over imbibing the night before, as would one of the UWS's big ass omelettes stuffed with peppers, onions and goat cheese.
With the name Bathtub Gin it's clear this Chelsea watering hole knows its way around juniper berry-based spirits. To that end, this spring they're mixing up Tanqueray London Dry Gin into the Blushing Lady #2 ($15), a super lemon-infused drink that also contains Pavan liqueur, a St. Germaine-esque upstart. To that, mixologists add in pressed lemon, lemon oils, egg white and Peychaud's Bitters, which we now know all about.
La Ranita (courtesy Omar's)
Margaritas aren't the only way to get your tequila fix; at Omar's La Ranita they're offering an eponymous cocktail based on Corralejo Reposado, an unusual variety of the spirit that skews more towards gin, with hints of pine, brine and peppercorn. The tequila gets shaken with fresh citrus, an apricot jam and some reduced red wine; its unique flavors are at once sweet, tart, bitter and herbal. The $16 drink is on the higher side, but the setting is elegant and the accompanying cuisine top notch.
Rum typically evokes sun-drenched beaches and frozen fruit-filled monstrosities, but the Earnest 205 at LES' Leave Rochelle Out Of It uses Brugal Extra Dry, an ultrafiltered white rum from the Dominican Republic that's a far cry from the coconut rum sugar rushes of island cocktails. To the rum, the bar adds maraschino liqueur, fresh lime and grapefruit juices and some hopped grapefruit bitters, which balances the natural sweetness of the other ingredients. The $13 drink is served up in a chilled glass; brain freeze risk minimal.
The mini hybrid chain known as MexiBBQ obviously excels in its margarita offerings, using fresh fruit purees instead of the cloyingly sweet sugar syrup found behind other bars. Their Passion Fruit Jalapeno Margarita offers a little bit of heat with your sweet, with a touch of sour from fresh lime juice as well. They're serving up their margaritas in pint glasses—rimmed in a spicy salt mix—and after two or three you'll definitely be feeling the love. They're also just $7 during happy hour; all the more reason to venture out to Queens (or the UES).
